'Is that really a pincer nest?'
Standing over an enormous branch, Jin dubiously gazed over the nest site below him.
Countless pincers were huddled in groups, some asleep while others were roaming around freely. Their emerald chitin had a much darker hue than the ones he had seen before, akin to mud.
Before they commenced the operation, Jin wanted to analyze the nest site himself. Unfortunately, he didn't like what he was seeing.
Unlike their usual liking for sunlight, this nest was thoroughly surrounded by shadows. The ceiling, made up of entangled trees, was thinner than usual, but still didn't let through enough light for clear sight. He could barely see a few hordes that were near him. What lay ahead was still a mystery.
He could see some of them munching on what seemed to be the remains of another monster, the grating of their teeth almost unendurably. The monster they were feeding on seemed to have wings, but none of it remained anymore, only the bones lying around.
The presence of another monster raised a flag in his mind, but he couldn't focus on such a matter at the moment. There was something else that made him groan.
'Ugh… I'm an idiot. Why did I have to take this role out of all the things I could've done?'
The army of pincers below him was quite similar to the ones he had seen, but they were still different. Their alabaster chitin seemed much more resilient, the few rays of sunlight getting completely absorbed by the dark hue. It was as if they had matured into an adult pincer.
He gulped, noticing the sharp legs and giant claws that threatened to tear him apart. The bones of the monster they devoured snapped like a twig between those claws. They didn't have any ears, but were capable of noticing the slightest change in their surroundings solely with their eyesight.
Their movements were not erratic anymore. Most of the ones that were awake crawled around the nest, serving as keen guards. A group of pincers gleefully crawled out of the nest, moving in a certain direction with dead prey lying on their wide body.
Knitting his brows, he stared at the group of pincers.
"Should I send Conrad with Evelin instead?"
"Send me where?"
A curious voice pulled his attention away from the nest. Looking over his shoulder, he noticed Conrad tending to his armor. His staff was lying beside him, the runes etched across it pulsing with extreme intensity. Jin could feel the throbbing energy even though he was standing a few meters away.
Pursing his lips, Jin spoke.
"It's… nothing. Is everyone ready?"
Conrad picked up the staff beside him and walked toward him.
"Evelin and Celia seem to have reached their location successfully. I couldn't see much from where I was, but the situation doesn't seem any better than here. As for…"
Jin listened intently as Conrad explained everyone's status in detail.
The plan was quite simple, as far as Jin was concerned.
With the amount of information he had on nests, Jin knew that for a nest to form, a leader was crucial. It would be even better to say that without one, a nest can't get together at all. The sole reason was that this leader would keep the entire nest together, commanding the several hordes under its rule.
It was one of the reasons why the pincers showed unnatural intelligence in their movements. Every one of them was strangely connected to this leading beast, which increased their intellect immensely.
As for this leader, its sole reason for forming the nest was for reproduction. When it came to pincers, the queen was said to lay eggs for several months. In this period, she was highly vulnerable and had to stay in one place like a sitting duck.
That was the core of their plan.
'Why does it feel like we're the monsters here?'
The place where the queen laid eggs was supposed to be the heart of the nest. It was usually a bit further from the nest itself, but was still highly guarded. The rest of the beasts would bring her all the nutrition she would need during this time, making sure she wouldn't have to leave.
But that didn't mean one could simply kill the queen and destroy the eggs to ruin the nest. The moment the queen was threatened, every beast in the nest would know about it. Before the person could do anything, countless monsters would be upon him.
In that case, what would happen if the eggs themselves were destroyed?
Regardless of how he felt, today, they were about to find out. And the blessed doing the honors were Evelin and Celia. When he was explaining this plan to them, Celia was already ready to beat him to a pulp and throw him as bait inside the nest instead. Fortunately, Evelin was sharp enough to understand why he had decided to send her specifically.
'If circumstances were different, I would have gone to the queen myself. But Evelin's core ability… I would've been a fool not to send her there.'
Before forming the plan, he had asked everyone to reveal their core abilities to the cohort. It was certainly a big gamble, considering it was taboo to ask someone else about their core ability unless one wanted to. But they knew better than to retaliate when he revealed his own ability first.
Meanwhile, Evelin's core ability was a very strange one. As a matter of fact, he didn't even know if something of the sort was even possible.
She could store the damage that was dealt to her and then use that stored energy in the form of an explosion. He remembered having heard an explosion when she had killed the pincer previously. Knowing what it really was, Jin couldn't help but feel like there was much more to the tower than he could imagine.
This ability was not the only ability he had sent her there, though. He wished that he would be proved wrong, but in rare occurrences, the queen would lay eggs in sessions. In the intervals between these sessions, the queen would be able to move freely, being able to counter if someone were to attack her.
Among them, except Jin, only she was skilled enough to go against such a monster that was said to be a second-ranked threat. She was the only one who could escape if any variables appeared out of nowhere, and was capable of improvising as well.
Once the heart of the nest was destroyed, all the beasts in the nest would be stunned for some time. If they couldn't escape in that time window, every single one of the pincers, including the queen, would utterly overwhelm them before they could even make a move.
However, that meant someone would have to prevent the pincers from going to the queen altogether, buying them time to destroy the eggs.
'Curses… I should have never gone to that damned vice guildmaster.'
Until Evelin and Celia found a way to destroy the eggs, Jin was supposed to draw the attention of the countless pincers toward him. He would have to cause such mayhem that all they could think about was to eliminate him first.
As for how he would accomplish this task, it was a mystery to him as well.
But that was not all. Someone needed to make sure that after the eggs were demolished, Evelin and Celia would be able to escape. Not to mention, scout the area ahead, just in case a few stragglers were waiting for them to appear. He was certain that this fight demanded everyone to push past their limits, and even further.
In such a state, if someone were to attack them before reaching the outpost, none of them would be in a state to fight back. Their entire plan would fail miserably.
That was why, instead of fighting the nest with Jin, Sam and Dean were supposed to make their way past the nest as fast as possible. They had to avoid fighting at all costs, and even if it came to it, they had to finish the opponent in a single exchange.
To help them in this task, Conrad was tasked with guarding Sam and Dean. Once they were on the other side of the nest, Conrad would go to Evelin and Celia to help them escape while Sam and Dean went ahead, clearing any individual beasts that could pose a threat.
'That… is not simple at all. At least I've faced countless beasts before. But for them, this is their first life-threatening battle. For me, this is nothing but another hurdle I have to pass in this life.'
He was still unsure whether the plan would succeed. After all, Evelin could end up dying at the hands of the queen, or something far worse could be waiting for them, even if they succeeded at passing through the nest. There were infinite things that could go wrong, with him being behind one of them. But he didn't have the luxury to ponder over them anymore.
Lifting his head, he took in a deep breath.
By then, Conrad's report was already over. Brandishing the staff, he was standing alongside Jin.
Suddenly, the energy inside the staff rippled and surged forth. The qi erupted from one of the ends and stretched forward, slowly shaping itself in the blade of a spear. The qi swirling around it was pulled into the ethereal blade, giving it an even sharper edge. Before he knew it, his staff had become a spear, its runes glowing magnificently.
Jin spoke as he lowered his head, his voice aloof.
"I'll meet you on the other side."
Relaxing his entire body, he jumped forward.